An Ounce of Intervention is a Lifetime of Cure Wouldn’t it be great if bureaucracy didn't get in the way of the most vulnerable young children getting help with developmental delays? Even when parents are able to identify signs that their children aren't...
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Vulnerable Youth
Not all politics is conflict
IT'S NOT ALL BAD NEWS Not all politics is conflict. For the first time in a REALLY LONG TIME, juvenile justice reform is progressing in Pennsylvania. Bipartisan Movement in Harrisburg State lawmakers from both sides of the aisle put aside partisan differences...
Testimony: Making OYO Permanent
Testimony Presented to Philadelphia City Council Stefanie Arbutina, Vulnerable Youth Policy Director February 19, 2026 Good morning, Council President Johnson and members of City Council. My name is Stefanie Arbutina, and I am the Vulnerable Youth Policy Director at...
Can it be right for the gov’t to break up families?
Government-Sanctioned Family Separation Goes Beyond Immigration Enforcement In these chaotic times when we are awash in videos documenting children used as bait in the ICE dragnet or swollen child detention centers filled with orphaned immigrant children, it’s...
A Gift so Big…It Can’t be Wrapped
Giving a Gift that Keeps on Giving As the Christmas song goes, "I don't want a lot for Christmas. There is just one thing I need." For lots of us, that means love, family, health, or maybe a little gift or two. For the 17,000+ kids in the juvenile justice...
This Will Scare You
Sticks and Stones and Names Will Hurt You Troublemaker. Disruptive. Difficult. These labels can follow a child around their whole life with devastating consequences. At a Philadelphia City Council hearing organized by Children First, teenagers shared their...
TESTIMONY: GPS technology in Philadelphia’s juvenile justice system
Testimony Presented to Philadelphia City Council Children and Youth and Technology and Information Services Committees Stefanie Arbutina, Vulnerable Youth Policy Director October 28, 2025 Dear Chairs Phillips and Landau and Members of the Children and Youth and...
Report: Enhancing EI Referrals for Children in Child Welfare
Children involved in Pennsylvania’s child welfare system are at significantly higher risk for developmental delays due to abuse, neglect, poverty, and family instability. Early Intervention (EI) services under Part C of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act...
Early Intervention is Critical to Child Welfare
PRESS RELEASE LITTLE KIDS WHO NEED THERAPY THE MOST GET IT THE LEAST Only about 1 in 10 infants, toddlers in child welfare system get Early Intervention Young children who live through abuse, neglect, poverty, and instability don’t have the tools to make sense of...
Policy Brief: Improving Infant-Toddler EI Access in Child Welfare
Children involved in Pennsylvania’s child welfare system are at significantly higher risk for developmental delays due to abuse, neglect, poverty, and family instability. Early Intervention (EI) services under Part C of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act...